Lights dimmed, and the theater boomed with cheers as the spectators awaited for the first dance to begin. From behind the curtains, the Student Artistic Directors, Melissa Rodriguez (12), Chloe Saber (12), and Brittney Sanchez (12), came out and said a few words before the show began. For two nights, the West High Dance Department held a dance showcase at the Armstrong Theater.

  Most of the choreography is done by the students themselves. The first performance was to Meghan Trainor’s “I’d Want to be Me Too!” Which was performed by Advance Dance and choreographed by Sanchez.

  There were a few solo performances and performances done by small groups. These included “Habanera”, choreographed and performed by Alexia Valencia (12), “Not Everybody Lives,” choreographed and performed by Dominique Dungca (11), Miki Kainuma (12), and Sheena Uchino (10).

  Angelica Noche (10), was in dance the previous year, but this was her first showcase in the audience. She enjoyed every moment of it, but one performance really stood out to her. She stated, “When Intermediate Dance performed ‘Whistle While you Werk It,’ I was really taken aback. They had props and whistles and since they were intermediate dancers, they knew how to do many techniques, such as turns.”

  Ian Park (10) stated, “Most of the intermediate and advanced dance’s performances were really amazing. They had the most experience and practice for the showcase so it makes sense that those were better.” Some of these performances included “Ain’t Your Momma,” “Word Up,” and “Money.”

  When Dunga, Kainuma, and Uchino performed “Not Everybody Lives,” Nick Armstrong (11) was really taken aback by how the choreography complemented the music. “I like how you could easily interpret the music through the dance. Overall the piece was emotional and very touching.”

  If you missed this showcase there are two more to come this year, one in Spring and another closer to the end of the year.